Blog Comments & Posts

I agree with Rand in that social media marketing is not just "common sense" and companies should be investing in someone who has specific knowledge; BUT, I'm glad Peter clarified his position in his comment - because I happen to agree with him too!

I don't call myself a social media "expert" for the exact same reasons Peter won't hire one - it's an overused, cliched, obnoxious title that has overrun the online marketing industry like a weed. Just search on Twitter or LinkedIn for "social media expert" and have a chuckle at all the clowns out there calling themselves that who haven't CLUE 1 about what they're doing. Where's your proof? What real, substantial social media marketing success can you point to (and I don't just mean setting up a profile and getting followers, friends, Likes, etc.)?

Just like with any other marketing discipline, expertise comes with experience, knowledge and, most importantly, success. The proof is in the pudding, people. If you're a business owner looking to hire someone to handle social media, ask about specific campaigns/initiatives, goals, tools used, metrics, and results. If you're an "expert" looking to get hired, be prepared to talk about this.

Peter's post actually reminded me of a similar one written on the HubSpot blog last year called Please Don't Start a Social Media Marketing Agency. It got a similar reaction, and being from an agency that primarily does social media marketing, I wrote a response to that post called Is There Such a Thing as a Social Media Marketing Agency? My point here is that agencies (and "experts") have to realize that social media is so much more than Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn (exactly the point Rand is making in his "Spheres of Social Media Expertise" table). Social media (and all its tools and tactics) needs to be part of the whole - not the whole itself.